Only 12 percent of American adults are metabolically healthy, study finds
November 28, 2018
The prevalence of optimal metabolic health in American adults is ‘alarmingly low,’ even among people who are normal weight, a new study finds.
Researchers examine ways to improve retail experience for WIC program recipients
November 27, 2018
A team led by Gillings School researchers examined the retail experience of customers of the Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants and Children (WIC) program and identified ways in which the experience of WIC recipients could be improved.
For teens with Type 1 diabetes, lower socioeconomic status is linked with higher rates of obesity
October 4, 2018
Approximately 36 percent of adolescents with Type 1 diabetes are overweight or obese. A recent study found that, especially among females in this population, markers of lower socioeconomic status may be associated with higher body fat in the first decade following diagnosis with Type 1 diabetes.
Breaking the link between obesity, gastrointestinal cancers
September 30, 2018 Previous studies have demonstrated a connection between obesity and a person’s risk of developing colon and other gastrointestinal cancers. Now, scientists are investigating approaches that can break that relationship. Dr. Steven Hursting has co-authored an extensive review of research establishing the biological links between obesity and various gastrointestinal cancers, and of studies showing how various weight-related interventions may help reverse this connection.
Study finds race and ethnic health disparities for young children in outcomes of Type 1 diabetes
September 23, 2018 Black and Hispanic children with Type 1 diabetes have a higher risk of experiencing poorer glucose control over time, a finding that shows minority health disparities in patients with diabetes begins soon after diagnosis, according to new research published in JAMA. Medical and doctoral student Anna Kahkoska led the study. Photo by Patrick Giblin.
New study finds FLEX intervention improves psychosocial outcomes for adolescents with Type 1 diabetes
September 13, 2018 Dr. Beth Mayer-Davis led a study to test the efficacy of Flexible Lifestyles Empowering Change (FLEX), an 18-month intervention to improve outcomes for adolescents with Type 1 diabetes. Photo courtesy of TV Brazil.
New study finds link between teenage drinking and high-grade prostate cancer later in life
August 23, 2018 A new study has found a link between early-life alcohol consumption and aggressive, high-grade prostate cancer. The study also found that heavy cumulative alcohol consumption over the course of a man’s life had a similar association with this type of prostate cancer.
Study finds behavioral changes insufficient to prevent early childhood obesity
August 16, 2018 Results from the longest and largest obesity prevention intervention ever tested in young children showed that children and their families in low-income communities were able to make some sustainable behavioral changes to their diet and activity level. In the end, however, rates of early childhood obesity were unchanged.
Global study examines relationship of prostate inflammation and prostate cancer
April 30, 2018 Dr. Emma Allott has examined global differences in rates of prostate inflammation and considered how the varying rates of inflammation relate to subsequent risk for prostate cancer. Her study findings were published online April 18 in Cancer Epidemiology, Biomarkers & Prevention.
Research identifies strategies to reverse obesity’s lingering, pro-cancer effects
April 22, 2018 Research from the lab of Dr. Stephen Hursting aims to reverse obesity-linked biological changes in the body associated with cancer growth. Hursting and several lab colleagues presented their findings at the annual meeting of the American Association for Cancer Research.
